3 ms·
> A good deal of willfulness must be inborn, because it's common to see families where one sibling has much more of it than another. This is a non-sequitur. Th
by xenophanes 17y ago
> A good deal of willfulness must be inborn, because it's common to see families where one sibling has much more of it than another.
This is a non-sequitur. The hidden assumption seems to be that siblings in the observed families are treated exactly the same and have exactly the same environment, in every way, which is blatantly false.
- trunnell 17y agoFurthermore, if willfulness is purely inborn (or genetic) wouldn't siblings be more likely to exhibit similar strengths of will, since they have such similar DNA? In a family, nature and nurture are mixed together. The only way to separate the two components are with twin studies where the twins are raised separately.
- pg 17y agoIt's also random which kids are willful. It's not simply the firstborn.
- akd 17y agoIt's also "random" (more like unpredictable) which kids receive what types of environments. Sometimes, Dad's favorite is the eldest son, sometimes Daddy's favorite is the youngest daughter.